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Cute but too long
Finally finish and… it’s ok drama to watch.feels like there was a lot of unrealized potential. The reviews are a bit over the top… yes it is nice but not the best.
I watch it for the romance… which Han Sanyang delivers quite nicely. You notice the difference in him and how he cares abiut her… but Tian Nian, well… she remains as childish as it can be.
While it is a good mix to be feminine and playful vs the cold/hard attitude of ML…. I found her too childish and with very little emotional intelligence. In compare to her friends..
also… at a certain point, Han Sangyan was really mean to her… to a point of no return…. And Tian Nian just takes it and forgives him…. Come on! No consequence for him….
Yes he redeems a bit later on but still…. Again FL that are underdeveloped with cero character…
the gaming part was cut short and dragged constantly the story… a lot of flashbacks and Very nationalistic….
Yes, it is their dream to win for China…. We heard it every episode for like 10 mins…
for the first time ever.. I started to fwd in order to advance the story….
Yes, story was nice.
Yes, he is great! She is blah
No, i would not watch it again
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Overall, I loved the story as the first 10 episodes explained how they met, the next 20 is how they bonded and the last 10 about team and love. The drama demonstrated how persistence can achieve many things, not only your job or education but love as well. The only thing that I disliked about this drama was the repetitiveness of flashbacks to HSY's past. I feel like all the flashbacks added together could make one episode and sometimes, the flashbacks were the exact same which kind of annoyed me.
The OSTs of the songs were amazing! I even download the piano versions of the song to help me study!
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Wouldn’t rewatch
The story held a lot of promise and provided entertainment, yet there were certain elements that were executed poorly. Around episode 26, I began to skip scenes due to the repetitiveness and excessive use of unnecessary flashbacks throughout most episodes. On the production side, the presence of noticeable voiceovers and dubs frequently disrupted the immersion of the story.On a positive note, the dynamic between the main group of boys and their interactions with the ML was the highlight of the show. The acting from the side characters and OST weren’t bad either.
However, there were some aspects that didn't resonate well. The portrayal of the "elders'" reaction to the ML's profession felt clichéd, particularly the unbelievable response from the FL’s parents. Despite being educated people that clearly understand the tech industry given how they speak about their daughter’s career, they inexplicably looked down on ML's career. He’s in the tech industry as well, specializing in and pioneering a very important sector of the industry, and even established his own company. There was already plenty of potential for conflict stemming from his age, character, and the FL's status as a student. They didn’t need to harp on him “playing with computers” all day. Like what?
Speaking of conflict, stupid misunderstandings were used as well as noble idiocy to cause tension. Both of which are never not frustrating and unrealistic.
The excessive use of cringeworthy and awkward moments between the ML and FL created an unintended perception of incompatibility between them. The FL often seemed like a prop rather than a fully developed character, exhibiting traits reminiscent of a manic pixie dream girl. The ML's aloof and arrogant portrayal was executed too well, detracting from the potential chemistry between him and the FL.
The kiss scenes also suffered from awkwardness. And the FL constantly being referred as a kid felt off-putting given the age gap situation. It’s unclear if this is a translation issue though. On a minor and petty note, the styling of the FL, especially her hair, often appeared distractingly out of place.
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A cute romantic drama with lots of humor. The romance runs parallel with exciting competition teamed with life events, love, teamwork, forgiveness, understanding, and self enlightenment. I felt myself emotional caught up in their competitions and strategies. There is no dramatic second lead unrequited love, thank goodness. The actors are great; all have the right chemistry together. There were not much flashbacks until the last two episodes. Still, it's definitely a re-watch, binge worthy drama. I have to say I was dragging the drama longing because I did not want it to end. This is definitely worth another season as they move on to the next journey in their competition.
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Female lead's character , dressing sense,& professional education didn't even match because if you see bit thoroughly ,she is different in many manner ( if you're going to watch it then notice her personality ,her actions).I mean she's multi telented but still an idiot & tries to look cute. Practically chases male lead constantly.
Male lead is so irritating , cold & didn't give proper attention to female except in 2-3 episodes. Can't understand reason behind showing these kind of leads.Okay..If you want to match them than create proper situations and sense. NO ROMANCE TILL 30 EPISODES WHAT THE HELL IS THIS ?!
Only good thing about this drama is those cute boys of K&K E -sports company. :)
SORRY BUT DON'T WATCH IT AFTER 15 EPISODE.
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Just finished this series. I really had a love /hate affair with it. First, the maincouple was really great, but why did they dress the fl so badly? I also thought the flashbacks were just too long and too much. I really liked the game element, but unfortunately I didn't see enough of it.The friendship in the kk group and the old friends were really outstanding.Loved that part.The romance ,for me, was not that great.It took i believe 20 episode ore more before they kissed.The fl was in the beginning really stupid and annoying,i was happy that she changed a bit.The members of the kk group were fun to see but some were there and just acted cold.Maybe some day i will watch it again but only for the friendship and not for the romance.
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Story:I am a big fan of C-Dramas and honestly out of all the ones I’ve seen, Go Go Squid is definitely one of my favorites. The overall mood of the story is very light hearted which I liked since I’m not a big fan of sad plots.
I think the theme of the story is basically “follow your dreams and anything can happen” which I found very positive and nice. The plot started to drag a little towards the end and I was extremely disappointed when, despite everything leading up to the international CTF competition, we didn’t get to see it. I think TN and HSY’s relationship became too rushed towards the last few episodes and would’ve enjoyed it more if they took it slower. Overall I liked the storyline of the drama, although there is definitely room for improvement.
Cast:
When this drama was recommended to me, I was very reluctant to watch it mainly I didn’t think Li Xian was handsome enough for the role which I now think is ridiculous. He is such a good actor and has grown on me so much. I loved his character and the way he seemed to cold on the outside but was just a big child on the inside.
I watched Ashes of Love and throughly enjoyed Yang Zi’s acting and had high expectations for her in this drama. Her character was the typical bubbly, rather dazed girl you see in most TV series. Overall I didn’t really like TN’s personality very much but Yang Zi did a good job portraying her.
TN and HSY’s relationship was very awkward at first but later grew to be very sweet and loving. I loved how TN supported HSY and was always there for him. Yang Zi and Li Xian make quite a nice couple and I totally ship them.
I think Wu Bai should’ve gotten way more parts since he was basically the star of K&K. He was barely in the first half of the drama and basically disappeared after the 20th or so episode. They should’ve explained his backstory and how he got into CTF. I think he was just completely out of place in the drama. Hu Yi Tian is too big of a star to only be a supporting role.
I absolutely loved all the members of Team Solo and really enjoyed the flashbacks HSY constantly had. Their relationships with each other were super close and they were basically brothers and sister. It was devastating to watch them tirelessly work their way to the top only to split up at the peak of their career. I felt so bad for Solo, having to bear the guilt of his team splitting up because of his own personal problems. His daughter Xiao Ai was super funny and I loved her and HSY’s little arguments. When Solo and HSY finally made up after so many years, I almost started bawling, seeing the old team back together again. I lowkey ship Solo and HSY so much and live for their bromance moments.
My favorite character interactions were definitely between HSY and 97, Demo, Grunt and the rest of the K&K boys. The scenes were super funny and cute and worth rewatching.
Music:
How do I even start? I love this dramas music so freaking much, especially the theme song 无名之辈 and Team Solos flashback song (I don’t know what that one is called). I think Team Solos flashback song portrays their struggle very well. The song is basically about your past successes and glory days which represents them so well. And out of all the C-Dramas I’ve ever seen, 无名之辈 is the only theme song I’ve never skipped a single time. My sister and I literally know all the lyrics and scream it out every time. I love that they play it everytime they win a competition, the song just makes it more meaningful. When K&K won the Asia Championship and 无名之辈 came on, I started full on crying while singing along.
Overall I love this drama and will definitely rewatch it a lot. It’s very refreshing and sweet and motivates you to pursuit your dreams. I’d definitely recommend. ( ^ω^ )
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A MUST WATCH.
I held off on watching for years bc Go Go Squid Season 2 was not good (let’s be honest, it was bad).I accidentally watched that first so I gave up on Season 1. I stumbled upon this again and decided to give it a try. Omg I’ve never been happier to be wrong. THIS WAS JUST AMAZING.
1. Li Xian as the ML is enough for me to justify why this drama is so good. He is dashingly handsome and the swag he gives to this character is the cherry on top. His chemistry with the FL is phenomenal.
2. FL is not the best looking actress but I have to say, she’s a great actress. Her character here is surprisingly not the typical annoying young girl in love. She’s smart, calm and very understanding. It made sense why ML fell for her even though he’s so picky.
3. The bromance is very sweet and touching.
4. It doesn’t focus on the competitions but on the interpersonal relationships which is why it’s so good.
5. No dumb love triangles. The leads do go through rough patches but it needed to happen for them to grow and strengthen their love.
6. No “evil” dumb characters. Just a lot of growth, development and wonderful story about this group of incredible people.
My suggestion- watch this., then watch the last episode of season 2 for their bonus happy ending!!
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Story: I was not satisfied with the story. Too slow at the beginning, and become bored in some episodes. They just dragged the main point of the plot until episode 20 something, and the main characters just going round and round with no purpose. After episode 25 the story become more interesting. The romance is sweet and cute. And some scenes are so funny that makes me giggle and LOL.
Acting: I think the lead actor and actress are good in acting. They look so sincere in funny scene and sad scene. However, the chemistry is not there. Perhaps it's just the characters in the story who has awkward personality, hence the chemistry become weird. (NB: Li Xian is so good-looking and cool!)
Music: The music is good but not very impressive. Fit to the series though
Rewatch value: Just some sweet and funny scenes are worth to rewatch.
Overall: I kinda like this type of drama about reaching our dreams even going against the mainstream, but this series is too draggy. Can add another story despite of redo the same act many times, like second lead love story or the purpose of the main female characters strong background. For the light romance drama, this series is not to be missed
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IT'S BECAME MY NUMBER ONE FAV CDRAMA
I never think how good this gonna be! Everything about this drama it's very perfect. It's not just focus on the romance between HSY and TN but it also focus on HSY past, best friend, KK and SP. All the emotions, happy, sad, angry, broken, found, everything I can really feel it!! HSY it's a very green flag man (act of service, gentleman, act of money, responsibility). Tong Nian too it's a green flag gf, she's never angry to HSY she always be right there to support HSY and his team. What a lovely drama! Also all the OST make this drama become very cool! Li Xian very handsome in this drama and I can't wait to see him and Yang Zi in Flourished Peony!Was this review helpful to you?
Loved Everything but the Leading Couple
Since Go Go Squid is one of the highest rated Mainland China shows on Viki, I thought I would check it out, and while I made it to the end, it wasn't because of the leading couple.Set in the world of competitive pro gaming, this drama has an interesting premise filled with quirky young actors that provide humor to every scene that they are in, and they and are almost enough to compensate for the leading couple's lack of chemistry.
Almost.
Separately, the two leading characters are both intelligent and successful in their chosen career paths even if they are both inexperienced in the romance department, so on the surface they should have a lot in common to make their significant age gap seem trivial. Sadly, whenever they are together, their worst faults are only highlighted, which makes watching them as a couple cringe inducing.
Tong Nian (TN) immediately develops a crush on Han Shang Yin's (HSY), and her inexperience manifests in the form of an adolescent crush, as she fangirls over him and tries to insert herself in his life however possible. HSY's initial disinterest in TN slowly evolves into a mutual interest, but due to his lack of dating experience, his exterior behaviors still project a sense a apathy. Overall, even at the peak of their relationship, it still feels like watching a 13-year-old girl with the hots for teacher, a teacher who is doing his best not to engage for fear of giving her the wrong idea and hurting her feelings. This dynamic is especially disappointing because TN is otherwise such an intelligent woman, and I found myself enjoying her character more when she wasn't with the leading man.
Leading couple aside, I would still call this drama "cute," and if you're in the mood for something light, fluffy, and full of entertaining secondary characters, then you may find this drama worth the watch. However, if you are very particular about you're leading couple and don't want a leading woman who becomes a less interesting version of herself when she's in love, then you may want to avoid this drama.
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HIDDEN GEM OF C- DRAMAS, BEST OF 2019 , PERFECT IN MANY WAYS, YOU WILL LOVE IT FOR SURE
THIS IS A COMPLETE PACKAGE C- DRAMA OF ALL TIME. I OFTEN GIVE A REVIEW FOR THE DRAMS THAT I'VE WATCHED BUT THIS IS A HIDDEN GEM AND A MUST WATCHED.AT FIRST, I WAS HESITANT TO WATCHED THIS DRAMA BECAUSE IT HAS 41 EPISODES UNLIKE MY GIRLFRIEND IS AN ALIEN, PERFECT AND CASUAL, PUT YOUR HEAD ON MY SHOULDER AND SUCH. BUT AFTER WATCHING THIS DRAMA, I'VE REWATCHED IT FOR 5 TIMES IN A STRAIGHT WEEK. THAT IS HOW GOOD IT IS.
SOME MAY FIND IT TO BORONG BECAUSE OF THE STORYLINE COMPARED WITH THE MOST FAVORITE A LOVE 020 (ESPORTS THEME), BUT THIS IS REFRESHING AND SO GOOD IN MANY ASPECTS.
CHARACTERS- LI XIAN DEFINITELY FITS THE ROLE. HIS NOT THAT ATTRACTIVE AT FIRST SIGHT, BUT BOOM, YOU WILL FALL IN LOVE WITH HIM FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. TRUST ME. YOU WILL ADORE HIM FOR SURE AFTER WATCHING GGS. YANG ZI PLAYED SO WELL, NO COMMENT, I KNOW SHE ALWAYS DOES. AND THE REST OF THE CAST TEAM SOLO, TEAM SP, TEAM K &K WAS MADE FOR THE DRAMA. THEY GIVE THE SHOW THE BEST SUPPORTING CAST/ ROLE. HU YI TIAN IS MY FIRST C- DRAMA LOVE AND I MISS HIM BUT I AM SATSFIED THAT THIS SHOW WAS NOT JUST ABOUT HOW GOOD HE IS. HE COMPLIMENT THE OTHER K&K MEMBERS. 97, ONE, GRUNT, WU BAI, DEMO, ALL, APPLEDOG, SOLO, YAYA, XIAFEI. THEY MADE THE SHOW PERFECT.
OST- THE BEST OST OF ALL TIME. THE 3 SOUNDTRACKS ARE SO PERFECT. MOST OF THE WONDERFUL OST'S ARE IN KOREAN DRAMAS BUT GO GO SQUID HAS THE BEST IN C- DRAMAS. NOT JUST ONE BUT 3 PERFECT SOUNDTRACKS/
LASTLY, THH STORYLINE IS UNIQUE IN ITS OWN WAY, YOU SHOULD JUST UNDERSTAND IT. YOU CANNOT CHANGE IT BECAUSE IT COMES FROM A NOVEL. THERE ARE SOME LOOPHOLES AND BORING MOMENTS LIKE IN EP 2 AND FLASHBACKS. BUT OH MEN. THE SCENES ARE SO PERFECT. LIKE IN E 3, 4 , 7, 8, 15, 30 AND UP.
ASIDE FROM DESCENDANTS OF THE SUN. GO GO SQUID IS THE ONLY DRAMA THAT I'VE WATCHED MORE THAN ONCE AND TRUST ME I AM PICKY IN TERMS OF WHAT TO WATCHED. JIAYO
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